Portuguese writer says 'God is evil,' hopes controversy will boost book sales

Madrid, Spain, Nov 3, 2009 / 22:04 pm

While presenting his latest book, “Cain,” in Spain, Portuguese writer Jose Saramago said he is convinced that God is “evil” because he has been created “in the image and likeness of man.”  The author added that he hopes the controversy sparked by his anti-Christian writings will increase the book's sales.

Saramago’s latest work is a parody of the “heavenly government” and portrays biblical history as “written by a cruel and irresponsible God.”

“When I say that God cannot be trusted, it seems like I am saying something that can't be said, but I actually prove it,” the author said, arguing that the destruction of Sodom as recounted in the Bible is proof of God’s “cruelty.”

“God accepted the sacrifice of Abel and rejected the sacrifice of Cain with the cruelty that only God can have,” he said.  “What kind of God is this who raises up Abel and scorns Cain?” Saramago asked.

The author said critics in Portugal have only helped to boost his sales, and therefore he hopes the controversy in Spain will have a similar effect.

“Nobody has come back from the dead to tell me if there is an afterlife.  I don’t accept the Church telling me that if I commit sin I am going to hell. We were the ones who created God in our image and likeness, and for this reason God is so cruel,” he said.